Nexus
by jory014
Summary: Commonly in fantasy stories, they say that there is a link between worlds the connects us together-a nexus. With the common notion of reality's logic, of course that is impossible. But, what if there is and there is a way to actually enter a world far beyond one's imagination? OCx?
1. Prologue

So, liked I promised...

I started a new fic... .

I know I have other pending stories there but, I just wanted to try something out.

Thus, here I am writing this! x)

As for my other 5ds stories **Love Written In The Stars**, **Searching **and **The Heart of the Crimson Dragon: Autumn Tryst** THEY ARE STILL ON-GOING. They're just on hiatus, but if I have the time I'll update them. :p (I may have graduated, but now WORK is eating my time... heck eating it a lot more than I was a student OTL... aside from that I'm also busy with my game developing team so...)

Just in case you don't know, last week (?) I updated **LWITS** and about it, I decided to write it while taking on the requests of the readers...(yes, requests for **LWITS**).

ANYWAY, here is a VERY short prologue...ENJOY!

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**Nexus**

* * *

Prologue~

A voice echoed.

It was definitely not familiar, but it was so audible to be ignored.

"Would you like to change your fate?"The voice asked, yet the person being questioned can't answer as it just listened.

"Would you like...to have the chance to start life again?"

It continued to ask.

As if finding the power to do so, the person finally responded muttering sarcastically with a chuckle: "Is that even possible?"

But as if the person didn't speak, the voice ordered instead: "If you wish to change your fate, reach out into the skies..."

* * *

And that's it.

Please do review and look forward for the next chapter. :)


	2. Chapter 1: Dream To Reality!

Hai hai!

Next chapter up!

Before any further words, first of all I'd like to thank my first reviewer (who happens to be anonymous):

**Guest** (you know who you are...I honestly don't lol)

(**NOTE:** Anonymous review replies at the end of the chapter!)

and to my first faver/follower for this fic:

**Crystal-Wolf-Guardian-967**

Anyway...

Well, since the prologue was so short and I am sorta writing in advance, I might as well release this early to make up for that short prologue, and give the story some justice. :p

For those who haven't read my previous works...well, that's not my usual length, and to make up for it I made the release of the first chapter earlier!

* * *

**Nexus**

* * *

~Chapter 1: Dream To Reality?!~

A girl with long raven hair and pale skin found herself lying in the cold, dirty streets.

As the sun made its high point into the horizon, its rays pierced through her eyelids as it waked her from her daze.

She sat up, breathing the air around her and found herself scrunching her nose a bit then covering it with her hand filled with disgust. _'What is this smell? Where the hell am I?'_ she asked finding herself finally up and about after realizing that she just woke up in a place God-knows-where.

_'How the heck did I end up here?! Shocks...what to do... What the heck would my parents say?! Damn... I have to get my ass off to work and I don't even know where I am...I even have a scheduled interview tomorrow!'_ she thought sighing with great irritation as she examined herself, only to find herself wearing her old casual wear during her elementary days, which consists of a pink shirt with a monkey print on it as a sleeveless, brown checkered jumper reaching around two to three inches up her knees worn over it, these heavy white rubber shoes on her feet covered by socks reaching an inch below her knees and her black leather bag slinging on to her body.

_'What's the meaning of this? Why am I wearing my casuals? Rather my "old casual clothes". Not to mention that I'm actually still wearing my contact lenses. Odd. Wait! I do remember that yesterday WAS a workday. I shouldn't even be wearing this, rather I couldn't wear all these in the first place! Hmf, the only thing I'm actually currently using is this black bag and contact lenses.'_

She opened her bag due to curiosity only to find the usual stuff she'd bring when she's going out with her family: Wallet, Cell phone, IPod Touch, 3ds, Psp, her keys, earphones and lip gloss along with the corresponding chargers for each gadget.

Yes, just lip gloss the only thing considered 'girly' in her bag, which she actually barely uses. Unless you count the hanging scented alcogel on the strap of her bag, then yes definitely just lip gloss.

_'This is the stuff I bring with me to travel. Rather the stuff I'd "presently" carry on with me. Hmmmm, if we were going away on a trip, I wonder where are my meds and my transformer?'_

Then somehow as if she suddenly realized, _'Perhaps maybe, I was dreaming? Yeah, it must be...after all it's impossible for me to actually fit in this jumper. Actually, I could it's just I'm too tall for it now.'_ she thought as she found herself wandering around aimlessly. Her eyes scanned through the surroundings. _'One thing is for sure, even if this place seems to be the slums, it's definitely not like the slums in Manila.'_

_'...but somehow smells like it. Even the ocean breeze couldn't even cover up the smell.'_ If you guessed it right, yes she actually woke up in a street that's just beside the port where you can see the bright blue ocean.

_'Yes, maybe I am just dreaming. Knowing how I usually have lucid dreams, I'll just wake up anytime whenever a zombie appears!'_ She exclaimed in her mind with some sheer determination. _'Yes, which I hope I'd never see.'_

She continued to wander around in her 'dream land', still not finding a change in setting as the place was filled with nothing but dilapidated buildings, the ground broken as if an earthquake just struck it, and not to mention the heaps of trash and junk lying all over the place. It was like a ghost town.

It was certainly not a dream, and the more she wandered she came into a conclusion that this was going to be a nightmare.

_'...I don't have a good feeling about this...'_ she thought as she finally stopped in her tracks and closed her eyes. 'Wake _up...wake up...wake up...'_ She repeated almost endlessly to herself like a mantra.

But much to her dismay, she was still there as she opened her eyes. _'Crap, I'm still here!'_ she suddenly felt nervous as she could feel her heart racing beneath her chest. _'...please don't let there be any zombies or ghost, especially Sadako! Please let this be a peaceful dream!'_

"I DEFINITELY WON'T LET YOU GET AWAY WITH THIS!" suddenly a shout came from nowhere catching her off-guard causing her to jump in place.

After getting a grip, without an idea on where to go anyway, instinctively she decided to go where the voice came from.

It wasn't far at all as she found a few groups of people crowding over two people facing each other with these gadget-like thing attached into their arms. Her eyes widened, amazed after realizing what it was.

_'OH MY GOSH... Isn't that a Duel Disk?! It's a real live Duel Disk?! Wow, it's the first time I saw one in real life!'_ she thought as she tried to get closer.

_'...wow, I can't believe I'm dreaming of Yu-Gi-Oh! Cool!'_ Feeling highly elated and excited of her discovery, she enthusiastically made her way somewhere a little bit above ground by making her way in one of the abandoned-like buildings' second floor. It was high alright but near enough to hear and see everything from her claimed 'first' live duel.

Not that she wasn't able to watch before, actually, she did and she was able to watch those duels and dueled herself during elementary, and that was the time of Yugi Mouto's reign along with their generation of cards. But, now, it's not just a bunch of normal monsters with trap cards and spell cards seen in the anime like Magical Hats, Mirror Force and the like. She also dueled live with the current generation of cards and even tried to get used with the XYZ's herself. But, it was just but a net card battle in Dueling Network. Now, she will be able to witness a duel filled with live emotions, excitement, cards coming to life and mostly surprises perhaps using certain archetypes, spell or trap card that she herself have yet to discover and many more. It will be a duel far beyond virtual reality and text.

The crowd was rowdy for sure, and judging by their clothes all of them seemed to be like hoodlums or perhaps gang members with all the leather, tattoos and that 'dangerous' aura coming out from them. But, she didn't care. It didn't matter as to what would happen to her, after all it's all but just a dream.

If it was real life though, even if they're just dueling she wouldn't even have bothered staying there to watch it and would rather make a run for it.

The other side, cheered:

"We, the Blue Brigade, will definitely conquer you!"

But the other side roared back with the same sheer amount of confidence: "We'll definitely not lose to you losers, for we of the Junk Soldiers, would conquer you Blue whatevers! Right here right now!"

_'Wow, they're really serious. Oddly enough it sounds familiar...now what series of Yu-Gi-Oh had these things in it? It's been what? One to one to two years since I last watched it? But then again my memory isn't that bad... I should know this! After all I played their games just recently.'_ she thought hardly, whilst she watched.

As the 'team' names suggested, they dueled with monsters in relation to their name. The Blue Brigade's representative dueled with water monsters, specifically the Gishikis. The Junk Soldiers on the other hand dueled with the Junk Series. Both something she found rare to be used. After all, in her current day and year even if it was just through the internet, she knows for a fact that nobody used them that much. Aside from the Gishikis, who's slightly popular, but the Junk series, it's only the Synchros along with their Tuners that were used. After all, as much as she knew, the current Meta is all about a deck either consisting of Lightsworns, Twilight, Gravekeepers, Gladiators, and etc. Perhaps, if not Meta then the usual Anti-Meta deck of D.D.'s and Chaos mashups.

So far, with how the cards were played, she noticed how badly constructed it was due to some unrelated cards used in the duel before her. However, then again this was but a dream, does it matter if they got the proper cards for their decks? Then again even in real life, especially in live duels like tournaments some really do have to make use of unrelated cards yet somehow good enough to play due to the lack of access to them.

In fairness, so far it works! The duel was a close fight and both pressured the other. It was an exciting match, and the corresponding crowds of each team cheered wildly on the sides! Simply, everyone was riled up in the moment.

But as Blue Brigade's representative was ready to give the final blow...

"Who dares try to step on our turf?!" the girl along with the crowd had their turned their gazes to the owner's voice only to see four individuals wearing black coats with a necklace sporting pentagrams on their necks.

Then someone screamed, "Oh no! It's the Magician's Four!"

"When did this zone became their turf?!"

"Who cares let's all make a run for it!" The duel ended immediately without even a proper conclusion as both teams ran in various ways. The four individuals sent out a roar of laughters as they all see the people ran like insects.

"Seriously, another one of those fake duel gangs... Like they could mess with the likes of us!" says the one who had his face covered by the hood of his cloak. The girl on the other hand just sat there hiding herself below the window hoping not to be seen. She could feel her heart pounding beneath her chest.

_'...oh fudge, now it's really turning into a nightmare! Now... C'mon mind! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!'_ she thought to herself as she closed her eyes shut. But nothing happened as, she still found herself there in her so-called 'dream land'.

***crunch***

She just heard a foot stomping onto something solid as a rock.

_'...oh shit. Don't tell me they're even sweeping the area off until here! Oh gosh... What to do?!'_ she thought as she just hugged her knees and laid her face on them. _'...this is just a dream... I'll be okay. Just don't let there be zombies or Sadako!'_

_'...this is all a dream...this is all a dream...I will wake up...I will wake up'_ she repeated again in her mind like a mantra. But the footsteps didn't stop as it grew louder by the second.

Then the door opened slowly with a creaking sound.

"Huh? What's a girl doing here?" a voice asked, which seemed to belong to a teen. The girl immediately perked up only to see an adolescent lad before her with spiked up wild orange hair. Like the people from before he was also sporting a Duel Disk on his left arm with his cards already placed there showing that he was ready to duel. He's definitely not part of the Magician's Four that's for sure due to his get up and somehow the thought of it brought relief to her mind.

_'Why does he seem oddly familiar?'_ she thought to herself.

"Hmf..." then suddenly he scowled at her like she was some enemy. "You're part of Magician's Four, aren't you?!" the girl finally stood up, letting out a surprised look on her face.

"Wait what?! Do I look like one of them?! If I was then I could have done something to you already... I think..." her voice fainted with tons of doubt. After all, things like those never happened to her in her reality. She was just too sheltered to even experience similar scenarios in relation to any sort of gang wars. Not to mention, suddenly finding herself in the middle of God-knows-where in the Yu-Gi-Oh universe. Unless, you'll count her childhood days when she was young and lead a pack of children, calling themselves the red tigers, to assault another pack of children, who calls themselves the yellow cheetahs that soon became the yellow ninjas.

"You think?!" He stated in a surprise tone, but sighed a bit in comfort. "I guess, you're kind of right about that you don't look the part. After all judging with the type of clothes you're wearing, it doesn't seem to me like you're one of them or that you're from Satelite either..."

"Satelite? Is this Satelite?" she asked a little bit shocked from the revelation._ 'Satelite...Satelite...where have I heard you before? Oh yeah right! I remember now, 'Yu-Gi-Oh! 5ds'! I'm dreaming about 5ds!'_ and in a snap, she finally now knows where she is and who this person before her. _'If this is 5ds then this guy...yes, he must be!'_

"Wait... No way! You're Crow! You're Crow Hogan, aren't you?!" she exclaimed happily as she walked over towards the lad, who's how surprised himself.

"How the heck do you know my name?!"

"...Oh my gosh, this is turning into a nice dream!" she squealed in joy, whilst jumping around a bit. "...now if only I have real cards here...it would definitely be fun to have a live duel with you, win or lose! Although, I'd have more fun with Yusei though or perhaps Jack!"

"Wait...what?! And how the heck you know Yusei and Jack?! You think you're dreaming?!" he exclaimed back at her, who just nodded with a small playful grin.

"Are you sure? Want me to slap you to check?" he asked, and for some reason caused her smile to turn into a grim line on her lips.

"What do you mean, are you sure? And of course not even if it is a dream!"

"Cause, I can tell you for sure that I'm not dreaming right now and actually wide awake."

_'That's preposterous!'_ she immediately exclaimed mentally. Then she moves around as if trying to find something, only to find her eyes drawn into a stray shard of glass lying on the floor. _'...the only way to confirm if it's a dream or not...'_

She took the shard of glass from the ground.

"He-Hey! What are you doing?!" Crow said with great worry, who just saw the girl raise her hand clasping the glass and now aimed it towards her wrist. "No!" he screamed and tried to stop her grasping her wrist just in time. "Stop that!" but she didn't listened as instead gripped the shard on her palms causing the shard to dig deep into her skin. She winced in pain, and let go of the shard like a hot pan that's now filled with her blood.

"Crap!"

Then it finally hit her.

"... It felt so real..." she stared at her hand in horror. "I'm not even waking up...I-I'm bleeding and i-it's painful... No. It can't be! I'm dreaming! I must be!" she shook Crow's hand away and made her way towards the window not caring about who will see her anymore and stood on the window sill. Her hand is now stained with blood and is still bleeding, the cut was just so deep as it hit a lot of nerves from her fingers to her palms.

"Oh my gosh...gah! Don't jump!" Crow was flabbergasted with her impulsiveness almost not knowing what to say. Although, she was the type to remain her cool at this moment she couldn't even find the sanity to do so.

_'...Yes, this is the only way. If I jump it will definitely force my body to wake up.'_ she thought preparing herself a bit and in a matter of seconds as she closed her eyes she jumped.

"No!" Crow shouted. Although he was highly perplexed, his reflexes we're fast enough to grab hold of her hand. "What the heck is wrong with you, woman?!"

"Dammit!" he cursed as he tried to pull her up. The girl on the other hand just stated at the ground before her wide-eyed, feeling the burn from her bloodstained palm, the beating of her heart beneath her chest and the sweat trickling down her forehead. Everything was just so real to be a dream.

_'...no...'_she thought.

As she hanged in the air, due to the amount of blood loss from her palm, she could feel her senses darkening until slowly she entered a state of reverie.

* * *

And that's it.

It wasn't that long like I usually used to do, but I hope that it gave the story some justice.

Anyway, more longer ones in the future I promise that!

Please do review and look forward for the next chapter. :)

**Anonymous Review Reply Section:**

**Guest: **No offense taken, I really meant to be that short to be a teaser. But, as I've said that is not my normal length as to how I write x) So, expect longer chapters in the future. (Yes, even longer than this one) Anyway, I appreciate the review! :)


	3. Chapter 2: Fiction To Reality

Hai hai!

So, first of all I would like to recognized and thank those who reviewed the previous chapter!

**ACubed25**

**Crystal-Wolf-Guardian-967**

And for those who have read, faved and followed, I'd like to thank you as well!

Anyway...

I may not be quick with the updates, but I'm trying my best! I hope this next longer chapter would be suffice as a make up :p

Enjoy!

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**Nexus**

* * *

~Chapter 2: Fiction To Reality~

The girl found herself sleeping in a bed. Nuzzling her head onto the pillow, her face is plastered with a satisfied smile. The light gently penetrated into her eyes from the fluorescent light bulb. Her eyes fluttered open slowly in response.

"It was a very nice dream..." she muttered then she opened her eyes slowly then closed it again, whilst her hands searched for her laptop, only to find her hands grazing on the bed's headboard.

_'Wait, I'm not supposed to have a headboard...'_ She sat up immediately her eyes wide with fright and bewilderment especially after she got a quick glimpse of the room she's in.

_'Fudge, I'm definitely not home.'_

Instinctively she stared at herself then at her now bandaged right hand. The bandages were stained with crimson.

'_...so, I'm really not dreaming after all. Wait, then does that mean that I actually just met Crow in the flesh?_'

'_If Crow is here, there are existing Duel Gangs and I'm currently in Satelite, does that mean I'm really IN 5Ds?!_' she thought in shock. She immediately got up from the bed and studied her surroundings.

There was nothing much in the room. It wasn't ugly nor was it elegant either. Perhaps, simple is the best way to describe it as it only had a bed, a small bedside cabinet where her bag is currently lying on right now, a window on the other side of the bed and just a bigger cabinet in front of the bed. The floor wasn't even covered by a carpet or rug, as you can see the floor boards, while the walls were painted simply with sky blue. For some reason, the place itself seems too ordinary for comfort. Then again she could be wrong, but still being in a place she doesn't know especially in a place where crooks run wild and free, she honestly doesn't know what to feel right now.

_'But, how did I get here? After jumping through that window, everything just became...blank. Damn it. How could I be gone from home right now!_' she thought slightly in anger as she punched the wall.

Just why? Well, not only is she supposed to have an interview, not only does she have to go to work, but most importantly she has a family waiting for her.

Although still nineteen years old, she graduated early both in college and high school and worked immediately to help her parents out. They're definitely not poor, nor are her parents that old already. It's just that her parents are sick and with the arrival of a new sibling, she and her older sister just wanted to help out since her mother can't work anymore. What made her feel worst is:

_'I can't be gone. Dad just left overseas for work. My brother's nanny just left for an indefinite vacation, all that's left is my Mom, sis and baby brother. How could I disappear at a time like this? Just how...did I get here?'_ But thinking back, as to how things were before she left: _'Do I even want to go back?' _she tried to breathe and walk towards the window to get a glimpse of the outside scenery hoping to get a hint as to where she currently is. But since it was near dusk, she couldn't see much from the outside.

She just sighed as she turned again back to the room and sat on the bed feeling a little bit dejected.

'._..this is bad and there's not even a thing I can do about it. I don't know what's worst, going back or staying in Satellite?_' Giving up on a way to go back, she just tried to figure out where she is right now. After all, she reckoned that it would be a waste of time to do so as she clearly doesn't have an idea how she got there.

_'Assuming that this IS the world of 5Ds why are there still Duel Gangs existing? If I remember correctly, 5Ds started with Yusei going to Satellite to chase Jack to get his card back. Duel Gangs are not supposed to exist anymore...unless..._'

Then she noticed her bag vibrating a bit disturbing her in her thoughts. Opening it, a red light flashed from her PSP and 3DS.

_'What in the world...?_' she picked up her 3DS that suddenly flew open as cards spew flying from the 3DS' screen scattering randomly on the ground.

* * *

"What the hell was she talking about?!" Crow exclaimed as he paced himself back and forth in the hallways. _'No, rather how does she know about my name? She even knows Jack and Yusei... Just who is she?!_' He bit is lower lip in slight irritation.

He clearly doesn't know what to feel right now. Should it be suspicion or should it be worry?

_'What's even weirder about her is, she thinks she's dreaming..._' he sighed as he slumped himself on the floor, as he placed his hands on his face slightly massaging it. _'I seriously don't know what to think about her and I ended up not fulfilling my mission._'

_'Great, now I wonder what will Kiryu or even Jack and Yusei would say about this. Shit, I didn't even have the time to go back to them to tell all about it...all 'cause of this weird girl! Good thing I have this transmitter on me. At least they'll know where I am...errr, wait it's only supposed to work if I lose.'_ he slammed his face on his palms. _'Explaining to them how I got here is another thing..._' he sighed in his thoughts, which were immediately disturbed.

"SHIT!" he heard someone scream from one of the rooms, surprising him a bit causing him to topple a bit. But, as he found his balance, he immediately stood up and barged right through the door.

The moment he laid eyes on the room, even he can't utter a word as his jaw just fell in surprise.

"What in the world...?" he finally muttered as he saw the cards spewing out from the screen on the girl's pink laptop like gadget.

The girl turned to him, and mouthed another word that seemed to be a curse only this time calmer than before.

"Oh fudge..." Her eyes were still wide as her left hand just held the 3DS. But was quick enough to go to the door and slammed it shut making sure that no one else sees this bemusing sight.

The cards finally stopped from coming out, letting her sigh in relief. The other guy however found himself still frozen on the spot.

She doesn't know what to do or what to say. Heck, she herself doesn't even know why and how this baffling moment transpired before her. Not to mention her presence itself in this 'reality' is a very puzzling moment in itself.

Silently she kneeled on the floor, and picked out one card randomly and found herself marveling at the card.

"Oh my gosh... it's a card." she smiled for real ever since she woke up. Then she started picking up the rest on the floor and smiled wider. "These are not just cards... they're Ice Barriers! I can't believe this!" seeing how familiar are all the spells and traps that came along with the monster cards she can't help but feel even more elated. _'Did one of my deck from the Tag Force games come to life?!_'

Finally able to find his voice, "What the heck just happened?"

She stared back at him with a perplexed emotion.

'_...crap, just how will I explain things to him? Honestly, I personally can't figure out myself as to what happened._'

"Uhm..." she gulped, her mind rummaged for words to throw at him. '_Think! This is 5Ds...what would be the most legit excuse?!_'

"Uhm..."

'._..screw this...lying was never my forte..._'

"...I don't know..." she finally uttered, sighing. Crow just gave him a look of disbelief.

"How come you don't know?!"

'_...to begin with I don't even know WHY I am here in the 5Ds universe and HOW I got here._' she just sighed, as much as she wanted to shout her thoughts out loud, she just can't bear doing so. As much it is hard to understand in a nutshell, even if 5Ds is a fantasy anime, cards spewing from nowhere and a person appearing from a different 'world', its just not believable. Rather, even going back to the rules of the Yu-Gi-Oh universe, this is SO beyond them.

"I don't even know how I got here...I-I don't remember how..." she uttered with no choice. As much as she hated the truth there's nothing to explain it better than the truth itself. The question is, how the other end will see how legit it is?

'_Is she nuts?! First she thinks she's dreaming, second she knows me, Jack and Yusei, and now she does not know what happened just now and how she got here?! Yeah, maybe she IS nuts!_' Crow thought and it's his turn to sigh. He just slapped his forehead slightly and rubbed his head trying to grasp what is happening right now.

"I-I don't understand..." he muttered.

'_Oh don't worry, you're not the only one..._' she answered sarcastically, but kept it in her thoughts and let out a sigh herself.

"HEY, CROW!" a deep voice shouted from the floor below startling the girl.

"Oh, so they still found me..." said Crow in slight amazement.

_'Not another character!_' she exclaimed in her thoughts. '_...m-my presence can't be discovered anymore._' she thought as she threw a quick glance at her surroundings.

'_...But there's no other way to get out from here.' _Then her eyes landed on the window._ 'Jumping through windows are not my thing for sure._' Then her eyes laid on the door.

'_...I was never rash to begin with, but today is an exception._' she closed her eyes as she swiftly took her bag and placed her now 'real-life' deck inside it and made a run towards the door.

Surprised at her actions, Crow stared at her wide-eyed.

"He-hey! Where do you think you're going?!" he exclaimed. But as his instincts kicked in, he ran after the girl and slammed her into the ground before she made it towards the door. "What the hell, you!"

'_...crap, that seriously hurt._' she thought as she tried to get up, but failed with Crow trapping her down on the floor with his weight. '_...now I know what it feels like to fall face flat on the ground._'

"Hey, Crow! What is happening in there?!" the voice exclaimed again, followed by thundering footsteps towards the room. In a matter of seconds the door slammed opened, revealing a young blond with piercing amethyst eyes and a tanned raven haired lad with deep azure eyes. Both of their expressions were surprised at the scene before them, and the blond was the first to make a remark about it.

"...so this is what you're up to?!" he said in a very dark tone. The raven-haired lad on the other hand just observed quietly, keeping his perplexed expression, while his eyes were fixed on the stranger before him.

Crow immediately got up in response.

"N-N-NO! It's not what it looks like!" he exclaimed then immediately shut the door, close and gave the girl a hard cold stare as if his stare as if saying: 'don't you even dare...' and the stare was enough to convey that.

The two boys however felt even more lost but just shrugged their shoulders.

"...anyway, I just happen to unexpectedly stumble into a certain SOMEONE, who did CRAZY things, thus stopping me from fulfilling my objective." Crow insinuatingly muttered.

"I didn't exactly asked you to stop me..." she muttered back darkly, as she looked away and crossed her arms. Crow was slightly baffled due to her immediate change in character, nonetheless he tried to be firm and hid his surprise with a greater scowl.

"...touché..." he growled almost inaudibly.

'_...Afterall, it doesn't matter what happens to me in this 'world'...if I can't get back anyway, what's the point on living? My role in this universe is nothing but of a mere extra...' _she thought sardonically.

'_So, in short, I'll just live and die without a purpose...hah just like before, huh? I'm once again turned to a person with no value and importance._' Then as she was mulling in her mind, the moment she laid her eyes on the blonde her eyes widened due to realization.

'_Oh my gosh...i-is that Jack Atlas?!_' she was slightly surprised but it got her thinking alright. _'Oh my gosh, if this is Jack then that other guy there must be...Yusei!_' If only her jaw could drop to the ground it would have in surprise, but of course even a slight drop she didn't allow it as she tried to keep her aloof expression. After all, being labeled as 'suspicious' is the last thing she wanted to happen in this universe.

'_...But if Jack is still here then... That would explain everything, especially 'where' I am in the 5Ds timeline._'

The blonde just let out a 'hmf' as he crossed his arms as he noticed the wound on the raven-haired girl's hand.

"Doesn't seem just 'that' to me..." he muttered. Although it was a vague insinuation, Crow wasn't too late to discover what it was although taking his time.

"...who are you?" Jack asked his eyes looking straight through her onyx eyes. "What are you? Where did you come from, kid?" She flinched at the question, especially more on being addressed as'kid'.

Like how Crow has assessed on his first meeting with her, Jack could see how the stranger is not from Satellite. Although its a simple detail, it's really all about the clothes. They are all new and fresh. After all, Satellite lives and survives with the trash of Neo Domino. There is no such thing as 'new and fresh' in Satellite. Of course, as much as that detailed hasn't escaped the eyes of Crow and Jack, even Yusei can see that and assessed as much. Unless otherwise the Satellite native has underground connections to Neo Domino City, then that changes a lot of things. Although they are aware of such fact, they haven't concluded that far yet of course unless they have enough evidence to conclude thus.

"...me?" she gulped. "A KID?!"

"...yes, you." he reaffirmed.

"I'm definitely not a kid!"

_'What the heck?! You calling me a kid?! Assuming I'm right about the timeline, you three are all supposed to be younger than me!'_

"Who cares if you're a kid or not, what we wanted to know is who you are and where you came from!" fear finally appeared in her eyes. To be honest, the reason why she wanted to remain undiscovered, the reason why she wanted to run away so much, it was to avoid these dreaded questions. Actually, she just really wanted to avoid situations like this. She hated confrontations where her anger is put to the test, and most especially being screamed at.

She could feel her heart beat go faster as her breathing became shallow. She could feel her knees shaking a bit. However, she tried to hide all those feelings beneath her apathetic facade.

After all, she didn't have a choice, does she? It's as If fate was toying with her. '_...why? I'm nothing in this world, so why? Why trudge me into the middle of all these?_'

She sighed as she looked away, towards the window to answer. "My name is Jaja, and I don't know how and when I got here." She just couldn't control her fear anymore, and with all the uncertainties around her it made her feel insecure. As much as she wanted to hide all that, it didn't escape the eyes of a certain orange haired lad.

Then as Crow suddenly remembered, how he first saw her. How frightened she was in the corner all curled up into a ball, for some reason, perhaps he thought for a second that maybe she was telling the truth. But he still can't shake his suspicions, after all how could she not know how she got here and while she knows them all by name along with their surnames to boot? Not to mention she claimed herself that she 'thought' she was dreaming.

He sighed at his own perplexed thoughts and it has been causing him a wild headache for quite a while now.

"What's wrong?" Yusei asked as he clasped his friend's bare shoulder.

"..It's just, I can feel that she's not a bad person. But I can't help doubting her, Yusei. She knows about us, you, me and Jack and even claimed that she would be happy to duel us. She seemed to know more than what she looks, yet claimed that she doesn't know how and why she got here. I-I don't understand. I don't know her but, arghhh!" Crow grasped his hairs tightly as he his his face on his arms.

"...so, she wants to duel? Then duel her." he said simply with his usual calm tone. Despite the years that they have been together with Jack, he can't understand why and how Yusei was able to keep his cool like this no matter how dire the situation was. Even if he can't understand, somehow he was glad that he was like that because it's one of the things that helps him feel calm at a time like this. It's one of the parts of Yusei that gives him strength.

"...a duel?" he retorted as he stared back at Yusei with a puzzled expression.

Yusei just nodded as he gave him a small reassuring smile.

"If she is a Duelist, a duel is the only way to find out about her, thus the way to find out what you should believe in."

Crow stared at him quietly for a while, although it's his usual 'Duelist Philosophy' advises, as usual he's right.

Before Jack was going to throw another question at her, Crow immediately cut him off as he faced Jaja. His eyes determined as it stated through her lost stare.

"You're a duelist, right? Duel me."

* * *

Since the room was small, all four of them went out of the house to conduct their duel in the yard under the serene and quiet moonlight.

She still doesn't know why the heck she agreed, and she can't honestly understand why they have to duel at a time like this.

After all, in her reality, dueling is nothing but a battle of the minds and deck. Compete in tournaments, be one of the best.

If it wasn't that serious it is nothing but a mere past time, while each duelists strive to perfect their respective decks.

It could end up being a clean fun, or cause a fight due to both parties not understanding the rulings of the cards used, which is mostly common in net duels like in Dueling Network.

Then something dawned into her mind.

'_...a duel. Regardless of the season it was, in the show a duel is always used to settle disputes or problems. They also use duels to 'find themselves' or help others to open their eyes on certain matters. Sometimes, like in real life, it's a past time. On the downside, it can be forced being it against people using 'dark powers' making it Shadow duels where the duelists wagers his life, more likely his soul._'

Although she only has experienced Internet duels, there was one thing similar in the series and in real life that duels can do: _'Would it have spawned from a friendly match or not between strangers, duels can forge friendships, or even enemies that I can't refute.'_

'_...but I doubt that this is just a friendly duel, and most definitely it isn't a shadow duel. Then does that mean that he wants to settle something with me?_' she stared carefully at the orange haired lad. His eyes still fixed at her and filled with determination. Those determined eyes that got her to agree with this duel without knowing the premise. Nonetheless, it doesn't change a thing.

"...I don't know what you want to know or prove by challenging me but I'll do my best." she muttered as she took out her deck from her bag.

"Seeing that you're injured and you don't have a duel disk, I'll lend you mine and assist you." Yusei muttered standing next to her, placing his deck back to one of his card pockets and offered her his right arm equipped with the said gadget.

Jaja was surprised at the kind offer, and smiled back while trying her best to hide her blush. "Thanks."

'_...fudge, seeing him up close like this I could see that he is still as handsome as he was in the anime. Fudge, now how the hell could I concentrate?_' she thought with fear, but tried to be calm. The fact that she's going to have her first 'serious' live duel is not helping at all. She could feel her heart race beneath her chest, while her breathing becoming shallow.

'_...crap, just like the first time I dueled online and having one of your anime crushes standing this close to you is certainly not good at all! He is just fictional...He is just fictional...'_ she kept repeating the last phrases in the back of her mind like a mantra and so far it's working.

She gave him her deck, which he placed carefully on his disk. But then she remembered something.

"Oh wait!" she exclaimed, causing Yusei to give her a questioning look but said nothing and just signaled his friend Crow to wait, who just nodded back.

Jaja immediately rummaged through her bag.

'If that happened to my 3DS then, it could also happen to my PSP.' She took it out. The PSP's UMD compartment opened on its own as four cards emerged. She smiled as she saw them. Forgetting the presence of the person beside her.

Yusei definitely saw everything, surprising him. He clearly saw the cards appearing from nowhere. The compartment after all was small, and it doesn't seem to have the capacity to 'create' cards. It was just logically impossible with the size of this unknown gadget to him. He could have sworn seeing a quick flash of red light coming from it. But kept it into himself and reflected at his own advise he gave to his friend just now.

'_...yes, I can't judge her now. The only way to know a Duelist is through a Duel_.' Yusei thought, as he continued to observe. However, now he understands his friend's bemusement.

_'No wonder I can't find you guys. You were all just here...now I'm definitely more confident._' she thought and gave them to Yusei, who just placed the cards there at his duel disk with no question.

"Thanks. Now I think I'm finally ready."

"Alright then. Let's Duel!" Crow exclaimed with a pointing finger directed at her.

The duel disk finally started operating, lights of various colors illuminates under the duel disk, showing that the power of momentum was in full swing. The cards on the card compartment of the Duel Disk shuffled on its own, and Jaja can't help but gasp in amazement. Yusei could only raise a questioning brow at her.

"...oh my gosh, this is amazing." she remarked. She just can't hide her amazement after all. I mean sure she had seen Duel Disks as toys over the Internet and in the TV, but the real thing is just different. It was just amazing.

"Is this your first time?" Yusei asked her.

"It's not really my first time to duel, but dueling live face to face with my opponent, being able to Duel using a Duel Disk and..." suddenly remembering that she had said so much, she closed her mouth and tried to recompose herself once more. "...Yes, this is my first time. I know this sounds stupid and I know you're not on my side but since this is my first time dueling with a Duel Disk can you teach me how to use this as I duel?" she gave him an embarrassed grin, which Yusei just returned with a raised eyebrow, but nonetheless nodded.

Now even Yusei can't help but see her as suspicious and at the same not. Actually, if he hadn't seen those cards appear from nowhere, found out that they all knew their names yet not knowing how she got her and being clad in those clothes, he wouldn't have to think otherwise. Honestly, he doesn't understand at all. He could understand a person not being able to duel without using a Duel Disk all his life, but never duel an opponent face to face in his or her entire duelist life? Not to mention there was more. What could it had been? But right now, as those questions plagued his mind, he will let the cards guide him through.

**Jaja=4000**

**Crow=4000**

_'Hmmm, and just like the anime, the standard Life Points is 4000. This is so 5Ds alright._'

"Ladies' first." Crow said, as Jaja nodded in response and draws. She smiled at her opening hand.

"I summon Samurai of the Ice Barrier (atk-1800 def-1500) in attack position!" Jaja declared and just like in the anime, an image emerged into the field and the sight of it once again amazes her as she mouthed a wow.

_'It just looks so real and so alive.' _she thought. The monster as if it really was alive looked back at her, which made her jump in surprise.

"H-hey! What are you doing?!" Crow exclaimed with another confused expression. After all, this is the first time she saw an opponent marveling the sight of the cards turn to solid vision. Then she got back into her senses and stared back into her hand.

'_...now I know what Crow meant when he said crazy and weird._' Jack said in his thoughts, and if Yusei could have heard him he would have agreed with him. Everything about her is just surprising to the three. Simply to them, she is just beyond normal, much to Jaja's chagrin if she finds out.

"Sorry! Uhm, turn end!"

_'Seriously, there's no end to her weirdness_.' Crow sighed in his mind, and started his turn.

"Hmf, here I go. You surely made me wait there." Crow draws. "I activate the continuous Spell, Black Whirlwind, and activates it's effect! Once per turn if I don't have a monster on the field, I can special summon a Blackwing Monster into the field. So, I special summon Blackwing- Gust the Blackblast [atk-900 def-1400] in defense position." Then like her monster, a bird-like figure appeared on Crow's side but in full grey color posed itself in defense position. But unlike his opponent, he just doesn't stop there.

"Since there's a Blackwing monster on the field, I can special summon Blackwing-Bora the Spear [atk-1700 def-800] in defense position. Then I set a card faced down. Turn end!"

'_...for some reason I don't think I could get used to this_.' she thought and she draws out a card. _'But if I'll be staying here for a while, I guess I have to_.'

"Draw! I summon Dance Princess of the Ice Barrier [atk-1700 def-900] in attack position! Now, since there are other Ice Barriers in the field I can activate Dance Princess' effect. Once per turn I can reveal as many Ice Barrier monsters from my hand to return the same number of traps or spells set on the field, so I reveal Strategist of the Ice Barrier to return that faced down card!" Jaja pointed directly at the card, while revealing Strategist of the Ice Barrier. Crow of course returned it back to his hand with no question.

'_...so this is her deck, huh? Ice Barriers I haven't seen them used much here in Satellite. This will really be one interesting duel._' Crow thought excitedly, as much as he hates to admit it, yes, he's actually having fun dueling with the so-called 'weird' girl.

Jaja on the other hand feels exhilarated at every moves she makes. Actually, nervous is the best way to describe what she's currently feeling right now. Definitely like her first duel with a friend over the Internet. However, despite feeling as such, like Crow, she's having fun indeed especially that for the first time in her lifetime she could see all of her favorite monsters come to life right in front of her. Actually, just the sight of one of her favorite anime characters coming to life before her, specifically beside her, was enough to make her happy. After all, it's not everyday she could see Yusei or even Jack and Crow right before her in the flesh.

"Now, Samurai attack Blackblast, and Dance Princess attack Bora the Spear!" she commanded and as ordered, her monsters went across the field and destroyed their respective targets. "Now, I set a card faced down. I end my turn."

"Draw! I activate the spell card, Against the Wind! With this I can select a Blackwing monster from the graveyard back to my hand with a cost of reducing my life points equal to it's attack power. So, I pick Blackwing- Bora the Spear!" with that a wind came blowing towards Crow like a gust, as his life points reduced. **[Crow=4000-2300]**

"I summon Blackwing- Breeze the Zephyr [atk-1100 def-300], and since a Blackwing monster is on the field, I special

Blackwing- Bora the Spear back in the field! Now, I tune Bora the Spear to Breeze the Zephyr! Darkened gales, become the wings, which will soar to heavens! Synchro Summon! Blackwing - Armored Wing [atk-2500 def- 1700] in attack position!"

Like in the anime, rings appeared from the tuner, as the same number of its level, surrounding the Synchro material and bathed it in light.

_'Wow, so they really do chant to summon Synchros...'_ she thought. '_...oh my gosh, don't tell me I have to do that too?_'

"Armor Master, attack Samurai of the Ice Barrier!"

'_...wow, so solid vision DOES inflict slight pain. Just like in the anime. I wonder how painful are the ones made by psychic duelists or damages from Shadow duels though?_'

[**Jaja=4000-3300**]

"I set a card faced down. Turn end."

'.._.what to do...what to do..._' she thought as she stared at her hand. _'Blackwings, even in real life you're considered good enough to be Meta. Not to mention, Yusei's Sychro deck is also meta, and if you consider Jack's deck a dragon deck then we have another meta here at our hands._' Jaja could feel Yusei's stare gazing through her cards too, and somehow she can't help but feel uneasy. After all, knowing Yusei he could have immediately formed a mind map of cards in his mind by now to counter and the thought of that made her feel slightly embarrassed. Actually, it's not about Yusei being beside her that made her feel like so, it's just she hates being left behind or labeled as mentally inferior.

_'2300...I could kill him in one turn, if I bring that out. As if I have other alternatives anyway..._'

"Draw!"

_'If only I have another Ice Barrier I could have removed that faced down card...I seriously hate backrows. But let's take this risk!_'

"I summon Strategist of the Ice Barrier [atk/def-1600] in attack position! Now that there are two Ice Barriers on the field I activate Dance Princess' effect, I'll reveal Cyromancer of the Ice Barrier to return your faced down card!"

"Heh, I won't let you return that back to me, trap activate, Trap Stun! This card negates the effect of all Trap Cards for one whole turn!"

'_...damn it. I guess I won't be able to use this now._'

"I activate Strategist's effect by discarding Cyromancer to the grave to draw a card. I end my turn."

"...heh, can't fight back now, huh? Well, I'm just starting! Draw! I summon Blackwing- Shura the Blue Flame [atk-1800 def-1300] in attack position! Now, Armor Master attack Strategist!" he commanded, whilst pointing his finger towards the said monster. As much as it all look like trouble, finally Jaja can find the strength to smirk, widely to add.

"Heh, I may haven't been able to use it now, but here I go! Trap Activate, Graceful Revival! Once activated, I can special summon a level two or lower monster from the graveyard, so I call for Cyromancer of the Ice Barrier [atk-1300 def-0]!"

"Like that would stop Armor Master..." Crow waited for his Synchro to attack, but it just stopped mid-way, rather trying to get through mid-way but can't. "Huh? Armor Master, attack her Ice barriers!"

"He can't. Cyromancer's effect is in motion. As long as there are other faced up Ice Barriers on the field, Cyromancer can stop attacks coming from Level four or higher monsters would it be mine or yours. So, you can't attack, nor use Shura to do so." Crow just gave back an ironic smile.

"I see. These Ice Barriers are really interesting, huh? I guess I can't do anything for now. Since there are other Blackwings on the field, I special summon Blackwing- Gale the whirlwind in faced up attack position, and activate its effect on Cyromancer, halving its attack and defense." [atk-1300-650; def-0]

"Then I set three cards faced down. I end my turn."

"Draw..." she stated at the field for a while then back at her hand, and then towards her deck. '_...I guess, it's time._'

"...heh and before I let you go away from standby phase, Trap Activate, Icarus Attack! As long as I have a winged beast-type monster, I can activate this card to tribute a winged beast-type monsters to destroy two of the cards my opponent controls. So, I tribute Blackwing- Shura the Blue Flame to destroy Dance Princess and Graceful Revival, thus destroys Cyromancer as well!"

With that, Jaja's field immediately cleared up and the only thing remaining was Strategist of the Ice Barrier. Jaja could feel her anxiety boiling again inside her.

'._..fudge, now I still have two backrow cards to think of and I have to eliminate the big guy from the field. This is seriously a killer. With Cyromancer, now I can't go for that one turn kill. This just proves that the real deal is a BIG DEAL. This is so beyond the AI version of Crow, and if Crow is already this tough, how much more would Jack and Yusei be?_'

Then she stared back at her hand.

_'I can still win this just as long as I could get this card out there..._'

"I activate Medallion of the Ice Barrier, this card allows me to draw out an Ice Barrier monster from my deck to the hand, so I draw out General Gantala of the Ice Barrier! Then I activate Strategist's effect, so I discard General Gantala to draw!"

'_And for some reason, the cards are on my side today..._'

"Now, I summon Defender of the Ice Barrier [atk-200 def-1600], in attack position then tune my Strategist to Defender!" and like what happened to Crow's monsters the sky bathed in light, with the tuner monster turning into rings surrounding the synchro material. But, there was something odd...it's as if stayed suspended up there in the air.

"...aren't you going to call out your monster?" Yusei suddenly spoke surprising her a bit.

"Call out?" she answered rhetorically, then it dawned into her. '_Did he just told me to do a Synchro chant?_' she thought with a dumbfounded expression, but nonetheless: _'I guess, if this is the rules of this reality then so be it!_' she stared in the sky with determined eyes.

"As the ice reflects the light of the sun, reflect the light to shine forth through the depths of a dark heart with full splendor! Synchro Summon! Emerge from the snow, Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier [atk-2500 def-1700] in attack position!" she exclaimed, and finally a monster emerged from the light and it was a Dragon with its scales colored with a mix of red and violet glistening like ice. It had wings with the same texture, and thus shone like diamonds. The dragon roared majestically make its owner stare at it in awe. It was just beautiful.

"I could finally see it. It's wonderful..." was all she can say, and Yusei can't help but smile a bit. Despite the fact that there are sides he can't understand about her completely, one thing he can attest for sure is that this person before him definitely loves and admires her cards. In a way, that's a way for him to indicate that perhaps this stranger before him could be good after all, since a duelists who loves and cares for his cards is a good person. So far, that way of assessment hasn't failed him yet.

"I'm not done yet, spell card activate, Monster Reborn! With this I could special summon a monster from either player's graveyard, so I call for General Gantala [atk-2700 def-2000] in attack position! Then I activate Gungnir's effect! Once per turn, I can discard up to two cards from my hand to destroy up to two cards my opponent controls! So I discard my two remaining cards to destroy Armor Master and one of your trap cards!"

"Heh... I didn't expect that one coming." Crow remarked, with a grim smile.

"Now, Gantala destroy Blackwing-Gale the Whirlwind!" [**Crow=2300-900**]

"Now, Gungnir, attack! Ice Blast!" [**Crow=900-0**]

'_...oh my gosh, did I just win that?_' she could still feel her heart beating wild, and now it's all because of pure adrenaline rush. All three were surprised, as much they hate to admit it, it was definitely a good duel. Both were close to beating each other. Actually, if only the destroyed card wasn't Mirror Force and it was Black Thunder instead, Crow for sure would have been able to turn the tables around. Actually, Black Thunder might have worked if only Jaja had more cards on the field and on her hand. But it didn't.

It might have been the ending they least expect it to be, but the cards did guide them through.

***clap***

***clap***

***clap***

"That was an interesting duel, can't believe you didn't bring me out here to watch here with you. I wouldn't have missed it for the world." a voice sounded from the darkness followed by paced, careful footsteps. All four of them was silent as they all turned towards the voice. As the moon was finally able to shine its light, the three lads just gasped in surprise.

* * *

And that's it, which I hope you enjoyed ^^.

Anyways, please do send your reviews! I would love to hear your thoughts, and just so you guys should know criticisms are highly accepted!

Look forward for the next chapter!


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